Accused in Manchester police shooting fired 15 shots

Myles Webster, 22, of Litchfield is led into the 9th Circuit court room in Manchester on Thursday. Webster is being held on $1 million cash bail for alledgedly shooting Manchester Police Officer Daniel Doherty. (DAVID LANE/UNION LEADER)

MANCHESTER - The man accused of shooting Manchester police officer Daniel Doherty fired 15 bullets at him on a residential corner of the West Side, essentially emptying his handgun, prosecutors said Thursday.
Myles 'EZ' Webster, 22, a Litchfield resident with a lengthy criminal record, appeared in Manchester District Court on an attempted murder charge. His bail was set at $1 million, after prosecutors said he was a flight risk; he had bolted from a federal halfway house in Boston last year.
Prosecutors said Doherty was struck in the legs and torso by five bullets and was listed in serious but stable condition Thursday after surgery at Catholic Medical Center.
Doherty, 25, joined the Manchester police four years ago.
'He's done this sort of thing day in and day out,' Police Chief David Mara said. 'In fact, it's not the first time he's encountered someone with a gun.'
Mara visited Doherty at CMC Thursday and said Doherty's family is with him at CMC. He said Doherty is not married.
Police have said Doherty was responding to a report of an incident on the West Side, but gave no further details.
Volley of shots
Wayne Street resident Lucas Gray said he heard a volley of shots about 6:30 p.m. and ran to see what happened. Doherty was lying on the sidewalk at the intersection of Wayne and Rimmon streets.
A passerby tried to use Doherty's radio to call for help, Gray said. A quarter-sized bullet hole was in one leg above the uniformed officer's ankle.
In a news conference, Hillsborough County prosecutor Karen Gorham said a foot pursuit took place shortly after the shots were fired.
She would not discuss whether authorities believe Doherty was targeted, whether he was wearing an armored vest (which is required when on patrol), and whether other officers were in the immediate area.
Nor would she say whether Doherty had fired at Webster.
Gorham said Webster was charged within 11 hours of the shooting. A weapon was recovered.
The crime scene
Dozens of city and State Police saturated the expansive crime scene, which included the length of Dubuque Street alley from Putnam to Wayne streets and ranged west to Rimmon Street.
Doherty ended lying shot on the sidewalk at Wayne and Rimmon streets near a white sports-utility vehicle and light blue subcompact sedan parked in the intersection.
A 14-year-old teen said he was walking a friend home on Dubuque Street alley when an 'Hispanic dude with long dark hair' holding a black leather jacket in his right arm asked him directions to Dubuque and Amory streets.
Shorty after, the teen said a marked police cruiser sped up the alley and a uniformed officer got out and ordered the man to 'Freeze!'
The man ran with the policeman in pursuit, said the teen, whose family asked that his name not be used.
The teen said he heard six shots and later saw two men - a white male and the Hispanic man who approached him earlier - standing on either side of the patrolman while the officer was on the ground. The teen said the officer exchanged gunfire and believed he wounded one of the men. Both men fled on foot, the teen said.
Hillsborough County Assistant Attorney Gorham said after Thursday morning's arraignment that police are not looking for anyone else in connection with the shooting.
Law enforcement, however, broadcast an alert about 7 p.m. Thursday to be on the lookout for a stolen blue 2005 Hyundai Sonata with New Hampshire registration 3140994 wanted in connection with the shooting. The broadcast warned the occupants should be considered armed and dangerous.
Webster's arraignment drew more than 40 Manchester police officers as well as his parents.
Gorham said Webster shot Doherty with the intent to kill him. A probable cause hearing was set for April 4.
Officer Doherty

DOHERTY

Doherty is a native of the Allston neighborhood of Boston. He earned a degree in criminal justice from Curry College in Milton, Mass.
He left a job as a Massachusetts bank teller to join the Manchester police force.
He was honored in January, along with Officer Adam Beland, for preventing an armed robbery Nov. 4, 2011, by following up on suspicious behavior at the Shell Station on Eddy Road.
Doherty was scheduled to skate March 31 in the Battle of the Badges ice hockey game at the Verizon Wireless Arena, a fundraiser to benefit the Children's Hospital at Dartmouth.
Doherty skated in the game last year.
New Hampshire Union Leader Staff Writer Kathryn Marchocki contributed to this report.